Attraction
by Ferrousity
Summary: Childhood rivals Ino and Sakura are stuck together on their Jounin promotional mission, much to both of their chagrin. When the simple headhunt becomes far more, the two are thrust into a complicated conflict that will force them both to grow, and understand the strength and maturity needed to be a Jounin. Shounen-Ai, with some dashes of humor and drama.


**Hey! I'm back, after like...6 years of inactivity. Well, if you don't count the oneshot I threw up a few months back. Anywhooo, I've recently found time to get back into writing, so I decided to hit the ground running! Some things to know: This story is rated T, but I'm concerned that it might bleed over into an M rating later. I'm not sure, so I may increase the rating to be safe. Also, since I'm so unbelievably rusty, reviews are extremely appreciated. So without further ado, here's chapter one!**

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Under the harsh heat of Konohagakure's afternoon sun, a pair of childhood friends were sheltered by the canopy covering the popular local ramen shop, Ichiraku. One of them was rubbing a sore spot on the back of his head, shooting a glare at his assailant. The offender only returned the look, cerulean eyes shining with indignation.

"You know damn well that you deserved that!" She growled, ready to reprimand her old teammate for whatever smartass comment he was preparing. The male only sighed, muttering something about "troublesome blondes" before shaking his head.

"All I'm saying, little miss Ino, is that you bitched at me for not having any ambition. And not only was I the only one who made Chuunin in our year, but my lazy ass is apparently under consideration for the ANBU Cryptology department." He paused a moment, letting his words sink in. "And yet somehow, you're just now being assigned your promotional mission to qualify for Jounin. Isn't life funny?"

He never saw the hit coming.

Well, he might've. It still hurt like hell.

"Gah. Troublesome, _violent _blondes." Seemingly satisfied with what would most certainly be a sizeable bruise on the smartass's head, Ino grinned at him. "Keep talking, Shika. I can do this all day." Shikamaru only rolled his eyes in response, returning to the meal in front of him. Ino gradually did the same, feeling herself become lost in thought as she stared into the steaming bowl of soup. Little did Shikamaru know, his jest had cut deeper than he thought. Not because she was trying to outdo him, oh no. Rather, Ino had lately been experiencing increasing feelings of inadequacy to her eternal rival, Haruno Sakura.

The blonde thought back to the simpler days, when she and Sakura fought endlessly over the lone Uchiha survivor. He had been the catalyst that had turned their friendship into a rivalry of the highest extremes. From that point on, they competed in nearly everything. Sometimes, Ino found herself wondering why_. _She supposed it was healthy competition. After Sasuke had left, however, things changed. It became clear that without Sasuke to fight over, the rest of their petty squabbles seemed to fade with him. It was as if he was the stitch, that once unraveled, dissolved the entire garment.

_'And yet...' _The Yamanaka's thoughts grew distressed. She remembered clearly their promise to eachother the day they had become Genin.

_Two young girls, a blonde and pinkette were grinning at eachother victoriously, proudly brandishing their new forehead protectors. Their fellow Genin were scattered about the academy yard, eagerly talking about all the things they were going to do now that they were official Konoha shinobi. _

_"Hey forehead." The blonde taunted playfully, fastening her forehead protector in place. The other girl did the same, glaring back at her. _

_"What's up, piggy?" She countered. _

_"I bet you that I'll beat you to Chuunin." The familiar flames of rivalry sparked in both of their eyes, and Sakura's smile was downright challenging. _

_"You're on!"However, Ino held up her hand, signaling that she wasn't done. Reaching to into the pocket of her purple garb, she produced two identical red ribbons and held one out to her friend. _

_"Remember how Iruka-sensei said that our headbands meant that we were equals?" The young Yamanaka waited for Sakura to nod before continuing."Well, it's kind of like that. Watch." The pink-haired girl watched her childhood friend lift the left side of her skirt suggestively, and flushed a horrendously bright shade of red._

_"Ino, what the hell are-" _

_"God, shut up and let me finish", the other girl interrupted. She tied the ribbon around her upper thigh, then returned her gaze to Sakura. "These ribbons are a promise; a symbol of our rivalry. As long as I wear this ribbon, Forehead, I will never stop working to become stronger, prettier, and better than you." She winked, before adding with a teasing smile, "Not that I'm not already". _

_The knot that held Sakura's headband slowly came undone, as the owner removed it. No way was she going to put hers where Ino did. Sakura slipped the silk ribbon around her forehead, before placing her headband back on, covering it. Ino grinned, and stuck out her little finger._

_"Then it's settled. We'll wear these for as long as we consider the other our equal."_

_Their pinkies met._

Ino almost chuckled at the memory. She never would've thought that they'd end up knocking eachother out in the Chuunin exams, only to both be promoted simultaneously the following year.

_The two rivals sat on a bench together at a dango shop, enjoying their treats. And once again, their relationship had changed. Without Sasuke to fight over, the two had begun to rekindle their deep friendship from when they were children. Talking animatedly, they swapped combat stories about their recent fights with Kakuzu and Sasori, two dangerous members of the Akatsuki. As Ino listened to Sakura describe her fight against the puppeteer, she began to feel jealous. Though they'd been equals for their entire lives, the gap between them was becoming clear. Under Tsunade's tutelage, Sakura had become ridiculously strong. Combined with her sharp intellect, her growth had been exponential. Subconsciously, she glanced at the medic's forehead protector._

_Sure, Ino had improved too. A lot, in fact. Still, she couldn't help but feel inferior as she pictured Sakura rending the ground itself apart with just a punch. As the days passed, the nagging feeling in the back of her mind only grew stronger, as she began to feel like she was falling helplessly behind. For years, she had prided herself not only on her talents as a Kunoichi, but as one who could keep pace with her rival. Had that time really passed already? _

Blinking, Ino was shocked to feel the damp tickle of a small tear slide down her porcelain cheek, falling listlessly into her forgotten meal. She was even more surprised to find herself growing angry.

_'It's not fair! We've __always__ been equals! I work just as hard as her, so why the can't I seem to keep up?'_ She couldn't even bear to think about their sparring match a month. It was almost as if she was fighting an entirely different Sakura. Their skill levels were so radically different, they may has well have been in two entirely different leagues. Ino had actually stopped the bout, embarrassedly giving an excuse of menstrual cramps before leaving quickly. That night, she'd gone to the training field to get some air, and clear her mind. It was then that a realization so painful had struck her, that she'd crumpled to the ground and cried. _'She doesn't need me anymore...' _The blonde thought bitterly. Sakura had long since declared her moving on from Sasuke, effectively cutting off Ino's role as a source of comfort. (Ino herself had cursed his name the day that Chouji had come back from the retrieval mission. Rather, the day he almost didn't come back.) And now, being so much weaker than the other young woman, she had no use as a rival. After all, how could you call yourself someone's rival, if you couldn't compete with them? She no longer had anything left to offer.

She hadn't spoken to her old friend since, avoiding her whenever she'd catch a glimpse of pink in the crowd. Ino had made a dramatic decision: She wouldn't allow herself to be Sakura's friend until she was once again her equal. And if she couldn't do that, then she wasn't worthy to call herself Sakura's friend, or rival. That vow had lead to her rigorous training the last few weeks, and Shikamaru's subsequent offer to treat her to lunch as a reward for her hard work. The Nara in question had noticed his friend's silence, and had begun to look at her with a mix of curiosity and concern. He was completely unaware how much his support had meant to Ino lately. With Chouji having to take responsibility as the Akimichi Clan head, she didn't see her two best friends nearly as much as any of them would like. Even so, Shikamaru had effectively been an older brother figure to Ino for as long as she could remember, and she would always be grateful to him for it. For a horrifying moment, she wondered if he'd been disappointed in her plataeu in growth. Was he only taking her out in pity? She didn't want to ask, but knew that the question would eat her inside if she didn't. Tentatively, she turned to face the lazy man, softly asking a question that she dreaded the answer to.

"Shika?" She began, catching his attention. "Do you think I'm lacking as a kunoichi? Am I a disappointment? Please be honest with me." To say he was stunned would be an understatement. If it wasn't so troublesome, he'd have wished to be able to read her mind, to understand where the hell that question had come from. He couldn't remember the last time he'd seen her so open, so...

'_Vulnerable.' _The brunette concluded mentally. His lack of response was causing Ino to grow uneasy, and he could practically see the conclusions she must've been drawing. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Shikamaru sighed.

"Of course I don't think that. Woman, I've been stuck with you for what, almost twenty years? If I thought you were a bad ninja, don't you think I'd have said something?" The answer seemed almost evasive, and Ino visibly tensed, forcing Shikamaru to try again. "Look," he began, gazing at her seriously. "You've got to be one of the strongest kunoichi I know, and lord knows how troublesome Tsunade-sama and Temari are." An awkward smile came shortly after, as he reached into wallet to pay for their meal. "Keep up the hard work, I'll catch you around."

And with that, he left her to her thoughts.

"What the _fuck, _Sakura!?" Screamed a panicked voice. Said voice belonged to none other than Uzumaki Naruto, Sakura's sparring partner (victim) for the day. The jinchuuriki was gesturing dramatically to what little remained of a tree, the devastating force of the kunoichi's fist having obliterated all but a chunk of splintered stump. The medic only scoffed.

"Oh please, I've hit things harder than that." She defended, crossing her arms sternly. Naruto only stared, mouth agape.

"My fucking head was _there. Right. Fucking. __There__._" His dramatic emphasis was completed by his wildly flailing arms, indicating the spot roughly where her fist had been aimed, and where an innocent tree had once stood. Blowing a lock of pink hair from her sweat-soaked brow, she rolled her eyes, turning on her heel.

"Oh fine, cry like a little girl why don't you." She muttered, stalking off. It was no secret to the people who interacted with her daily that she'd been in a rather sour mood for the past couple weeks. Sakura's penchant for violence seemed to have worsened, and her patience had all but disappeared. If she was to be honest with herself, she'd admit that she'd notice the change in her attitude, but had no idea why. Naruto's very loud, and very _inappropriate _guess of it being "That time of the month" had landed him in the infirmary with a cracked jawbone.

Jesus. She _was _pissy. But why? The antsy pinkette would've loved to know the answer herself. In the meantime, she had an appointment to keep.

Approximately fifteen minutes later, she found herself in front of a door that she'd entered many times. After knocking politely, she heard the familiar voice of the Hokage beckoning her inside.

"Sakura." She greeted warmly, gesturing for her to sit with a small smile. The younger woman complied immediately, returning the smile, albeit a bit forced. "Thank you for being on time. I've always appreciated your punctuality." Most shinobi would've swelled with pride at being complimented by the Hokage. Instead, Sakura tensed. She'd been training under the monstrously powerful woman long enough to know that unexpected compliments were always used to soften the blow of what was coming next. And damned if her hunch wasn't spot on.

"Wellll..." Tsunade drawled out, finding a tactful way to present her news. "As my student, you've had an advantage that not a single one of your peers can claim. Therefore, in regards to your request for promotion to Jounin, some..._amendments _need to be made to the normal prerequisites." She paused there, gauging Sakura's reaction before continuing. As it was, Sakura seemed calm, with the minor exception of her twitching brow. "Anyhow, I consulted our dear Kazekage on this, considering he had to do the same for his siblings. I think we managed to come to a reasonable promotional exam. It's simple really, a headhunt." Listening patiently, Sakura nodded for Tsunade to continue. No way in forty-two hells was it a "simple headhunt".

"Considering your talents, I think this will be both a good opportunity and learning experience for you." This was it. Tsunade was clearly approaching the climax of the assignment, and her overly cheery smile was a clear effort to curb whatever anger may erupt in the near future.

"You'll be in a special two-man squad to capture a missing-nin that has been hiding out somewhere in Sunagakure." Sakura's knuckles were practically white with anticipation. She knew that it was either the target, or her teammate that was supposed to be the kicker, and she waited for the hammer to fall with baited breath. There was a small instant where Sakura almost thought she was going to be assigned to capture Sasuke, but quickly shook the thought from her head. That'd be insane. It wouldn't matter _who _she was paired with, there was no way they could possibly succeed in that mission. Still, the seed had been planted, and now Sakura began to feel her stomach begin to rise in her throat anxiously.

"You'll be briefed on the target once you arrive in Suna. You and your partner will be departing early tomorrow morning, so please rest up." Before the pink-haired medic could say anything, Tsunade glanced at a non-existant watch on her wrist, muttering something about being late to something before dashing off. A low growl rose in Sakura's throat.

She _hated _cliffhangers.

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**And there you have it, Chapter one of "Attraction". Again, I'd really love some feedback, even things like grammar/spelling issues. (Spellcheck can only do so much, and proof reading the same thing ends up making you blind to certain mistakes...Oh! And I also have a habit of answering questions that are asked in the reviews. If it has a spoiler though, I'll PM the answer instead. So yeah, toodles!~**


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